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After long wait, Turkish Airlines finally landed at Manila's Ninoy Aquino International Airport at 6:31PM bringing along 266 passengers from Europe on board its Airbus A340-300 (TC-JII) aircraft direct from Istanbul. Its A340 has a seating capacity of 270 passengers.The thrice weekly flights are scheduled every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday leaving Manila at 8:50PM and arriving Istanbul at 5AM. Departure flights at Ataturk airport is scheduled at 1AM arriving Manila at 6:00PM.The Philippines becomes Turkish Airlines’ 109th country to fly to, and the airlines' 264th destination globally. It is likewise the 32th point in Asia. Image courtesy Rappler

Low Cost Carrier Cebu Pacific (CEB) disclosed last week that it's strategy to Australia worked as they are capturing more than 30% of the market to Sydney as of the first quarter of this year, says Gary Kingshott, the airline's Chief Executive Adviser.

“We’ve seen positive uptake in the first quarter with fairly solid bookings for the March to April period ... my sense is that we’re over the hump on the long haul operations,” he said.

Kingshott said he also expected growth on routes to Dubai and Kuwait, which were opened in the fourth quarter of 2014.

“There’s demand there that’s going to be served because of legacy carriers’ (higher) prices.” The Manila-Dammam route, however, will be suspended from next week due to weaker-than-expected demand and aircraft will be redeployed to the Manila-Doha route, he said.

The airline has been embroiled in entitlement war with Philippine Airlines (PAL) at the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) over its rights to Dubai and Doha saying that PAL doesn't fly to either Dubai or Doha or has no intent of doing so. CAB approved two of the seven frequency slots giving PAL the remaining 5 slots it earned in the previous bilateral exchange with Qatar.

The second Lubao Balloon Festival in Pampanga kicked off yesterday as thousands of spectators flocked to a field in Pradera, Lubao, Pampanga early morning Thursday.

Touted by the Department of Tourism as the largest hot air balloon festival in Southeast Asia, the event was participated by different balloon operators from 15 countries featuring 46 hot air balloons that will fly on the way to Bataan.

The balloon festival will also feature paragliders, kite show, and giant lanterns display at night until Sunday.Image courtesy GMA News

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines celebrated its 7th anniversary on Thursday with the inauguration and blessing of its newly renovated corporate offices, rooftop chapel and helipad attended by employees and officers headed by Director General William K Hotchkiss III .

After cancelling five orders for Airbus A330-300 aircraft last year flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) ha announced last week that it will be returning five A330-300 aircraft to lessors before the end of the year.

PAL president and COO Jaime B. Bautista said during the corporate board meeting held earlier this week that the new planes that will be returned to German lessors are the mono class A330-300 model currently used in the Middle East as it cancels future plans of expanding further in the Gulf region.

The eight single class A330-300s were ordered by Philippine Airlines in 2012 for Middle East operations. The airline has since flown to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, and Dammam. Plans to fly Doha, Jeddhah, Muscat and Kuwait fizzles as the airline adopts new strategy amidst changing economic conditions.

PAL entered into first Purchase Agreement with Airbus in 2012 for firm order of 10 A330 and 44 A321 aircraft with options for 20 A321 NEO aircraft for delivery in fiscal years 2014 to 2020. It signed a second purchase agreement for another 10 set of A330-300 for delivery in fiscal years 2014 to 2016.

Bautista said it posted profits of $50 million for January and February this year due to fleet rationalization plans.

PAL had first contemplated adjusting delivery schedule in October last year, with Mr. Bautista saying at that time that “there were too many orders from Mr. Ang’s management. We have too many A330's and A321's with nowhere to fly to... We really have to check if the market we’re servicing now requires all these planes.”

Mr Bautista previously said last year that they are "offloading" the single-class aircraft as it sees more need of the dual-class A330s, more so that they won't be opening new routes to the Middle East anytime soon.

Earlier this year, PAL deferred delivery of 38 Airbus A321 jets until 2024 from delivery time frame until 2020.

Bautista said that savings from the cancelled leases will be used to finance new orders for long haul aircraft to replace the A340-300 which will be announce soon. They are expected to fly the Philippine skies by 2020.

The airline is currently evaluating both the A350-900 and the Boeing 787-1000 for its long haul requirements complimenting the triple seven. The company however is holding its card tight as to future aircraft orders. There was no mentioned of the B777X program but Bautista said that a pair of brand new Boeing 777-300ERs will be added to the fleet soon for long haul flights to North America, its most profitable market.

Cebu Pacific under joint venture with cargohaus inaugurated yesterday the state of the art Smiths Detection CIP-300 air cargo inspection portal at NAIA Terminal 3.

The air cargo inspection portal is the first of its kind to be installed in an airport in Asia. It will be for Cebu Pacific Air’s priority use for all transhipment cargoes loaded in international flights to and from Manila.

The air cargo inspection portal can accommodate and screen up to 9 tons of air cargo dolleys and unit load devices (ULDs). It is powered by a low-energy X-ray source and uses advanced material discrimination software which provides high quality images that reveal detailed contents of freight and baggage.

“CEB is proud to be the first carrier to use this state-of-the-art air cargo inspection portal. Enhanced speed and accuracy of cargo inspection would greatly benefit our shippers and consignees, as we continue to operate airport-to-airport cargo delivery via our extensive route network,” said Joey Macagga, CEB VP for Fuel and Cargo Operations.

AIRLINES with congressional franchises have been exempted from the import clearance process for equipment, machinery and parts, the Department of Finance (DoF) said in an order, citing compelling public interest.

In Department Order no. 028-2015, airlines were the latest group to be exempted from securing the importers clearance certificate (ICC).

“Airline companies granted congressional franchises may be exempted from obtaining the importers clearance certificate from the Bureau of Internal Revenue” on specific importations of aircraft equipment, machinery and spare parts, on the basis of overriding and paramount public policy, public safety and public necessity considerations,” Department Order 28-2015 stated.

The companies, however, are still required to submit accreditation requirements covered by other regulations.

“Any availment of the exemption provided in this Order shall be accompanied by a certification from Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines on the necessity of the importation in view of public safety,” the order stated.

The Bureau of Customs (BoC) will submit a monthly report of all exemptions that have been allowed.

Last year, the DoF also exempted the Philipine Economic Zone Authority locators from the ICC requirement to promote trade facilitation.

The Finance department, on Feb. 6, 2014, issued Department Order 12-2014 requiring importers and brokers to secure a BIR Importer Clearance Certificate and a BIR-brokers clearance certificate as a requisite for accreditation with the BoC.

The new system aims to support the government’s goal of improving accountability and tax compliance.

Importers were originally given 90 days to comply with the new rule.

Of the 14,995 importers and brokers registered with the BoC client profile registration system before the July 31 deadline, 9,418 or 63% were able to comply.

However, it noted that only 11 or 0.1% of the total importers were able to beat the original May 21 deadline.

New York—Lucio Tan, the 80-year-old billionaire chairman and chief executive of Philippine Airlines, and his wife Carmen have recently completed a round trip between Manila and New York, with a stopover in Vancouver in less than five days.

Along the way, Tan delivered three speeches, chatted with journalists, shook hands and took “selfies” with airline passengers, sang with Martin Nievera and clapped for a 90-year-old former PAL flight attendant in New York.

Tan says he is happy to take the long trip. “I am very happy to be here to welcome you to the inaugural flight to New York City,” says the once camera-shy Tan, who heads an empire of businesses ranging from air transport, airline services, travel, banking, alcohol and tobacco, hotel, real estate, education, agriculture and trading.

Proud moment

PAL chairman Lucio Tan (left), his wife Carmen (second from left) and
PAL president Jaime Bautista (right) recognize Rebecca Verzosa-Santos,
PAL’s first international stewardess who flew on the first Manila to
California flight in 1946, during a reception at New York Hilton Midtown
Manhattan Hotel. Santos now lives in New York.

Tan is not the only person who takes pride about PAL’s return to New York, after an 18-year absence in the world’s financial capital. Tourism Undersecretary Benito Bengzon says the return of PAL to New York is “certainly a proud moment for Philippine aviation, proud moment for Philippine tourism and certainly a proud moment for us Filipinos.”

Tan feels comfortable inside the Boeing 777-300ER (PR 126) that took him from Manila to Vancouver to New York and on board the Airbus A340-300 (PR 127) that brought him back to Manila. “I wish to thank my PAL family for their effort in making this US east coast service a reality,” he says.

The trip took about 19 hours, each way.

PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime Bautista says it is Tan’s dream to return to the Big Apple. “PAL is today back in New York because of the vision and drive of one man--our chairman Dr. Lucio C. Tan. It was also under Tan’s leadership 18 years ago that PAL first flew to the city. He has made sure we would return no matter how long it took under his watch,” says Bautista.

PAL’s Manila-Vancouver-New York service, covering 14,501 kilometers, takes about 16.5 flying hours, making it the airline’s longest route. The new service operates between Manila’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2 and New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport’s Terminal 1.

“Although this is billed as an inaugural flight, it is not the first time for PAL to New York. From September 1996 to August 1997, we operated a service to Newark Liberty Airport that initially introduced our brand here in the Big Apple. Deep in our hearts, we knew that one day, PAL would be back in New York. After 18 years, that day has come and that day is March 15, 2015, which is also our founding anniversary,” says Bautista.

The 74-year-old airline, the oldest in Asia which flew its first aircraft from Manila to Baguio on March 15, 1941, is embarking on US network expansion this year following the lifting of the Category 2 rating to Category 1 by the US Federal Aviation Administration.

First flight attendant

Tan met 90-year-old New Yorker Rebecca Versoza-Santos during a gala at the New York Hilton Manhattan Hotel in celebration of PAL’s return to New York after an 18-year hiatus.

Bautista says Santos is the first post-war international flight attendant.

Lucio Tan sings with Martin Nievera on board PR 126.She was 22 and was the only flight attendant when PAL flew a DC-4 for a 41-hour first trans-Pacific flight across the Pacific Ocean to bring home 40 American soldiers to Oakland, California on July 31, 1946.

Santos, who now lives in the Chelsea section of New York, served with the airline for 41 years, wrote PAL’s first manual for flight attendants and trained Japan Airlines’ first cabin crew.

A graduate of the University of the Philippines and De La Salle University, she later joined the United Nations in New York. It was a fitting tribute for a New Yorker, as

PAL marked its return to the Big Apple for the first time in 18 years, says Bautista.

Tan’s voyage actually began in Jinjiang, Fujian, China where he was born on July 17, 1934. His parents brought him to the Philippines as a toddler. He grew up poor in Camarines Sur and he had to work as a laborer at the Bataan Tobacco Factory to help pay for his education.

Through hard work, he obtained a degree in Chemical Engineering from Far Eastern University in Manila. He eventually became a successful businessman and one of the richest in the Philippines.

From Manila, he expanded his business empire to Hong Kong, China and Guam. PAL’s return to New York extended his operations to the world’s financial hub, a goal that almost every tycoon has in mind.

Shared history

US Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg says “PAL’s return to New York is symbolic to both countries. It is a testament to our friendship, common history, our shared heritage.”

Lucio Tan takes a “selfie” with a PAL passenger.

“Our ties are further strengthened by over 3 million Filipinos in the United States and it is no surprise that PAL is now going to help service the community on the east coast,” he says.

“The airline industry, the air traffic between our two countries is growing. Tourism is growing and this is a wonderful opportunity to add another route. New York is the Big Apple, the city that never sleeps and the capital of the world.

It is a known destination for so many business people, the fashion industry, the food industry, the museums, Broadway, all of the things that people will enjoy,” says Goldberg.

The American diplomat says he is pleased that PAL decided to fly a Boeing aircraft for the inaugural flight. “The aircraft that PAL will be flying is a Boeing with General Electric engines and we know you are going to have a very safe and very nice flight,” he says. “I am sure there will be announcement of new routes to the United States in the months ahead not only because it is such an important market, but because of the deep relationship between our two countries,” says Goldberg.

Goldberg’s counterpart agrees. “The US and the Philippines have special relationship that dates back to over a hundred years. We have a shared history. We have shared values in terms of democracy and freedom of speech. The Americans that come to the Philippines feel so much at home. There is no language barrier, because English is spoken by so many Filipinos,” says Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Cuisia Jr.

Skilled pilots

Bautista says PAL’s modern aircraft and highly skilled pilots will ensure safe and convenient flights across the Pacific Ocean. “If you try Philippine Airline flights, you will experience very smooth landing. We are very proud about our own pilots. We hire only Filipino pilots. We don’t hire foreign pilots at this time, although we are not banned from hiring foreign pilots,” he says.

“Right now, PAL has an average age of a little more than three years. It makes the airline more operationally efficient,” he says.

The flag carrier, which started flying to New York via Vancouver in September 1996 ended the operation in August the following year, because of the restrictions associated with the Category 2 rating imposed on the Philippines by the US Federal Aviation Administration, according to Bautista.

Return to New York

A view of Manhattan , New York skyline from New Jersey “We started our flights to New York in 1996 and during that time, the Philippines was under Category 2, as downgraded by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Because we were under Category 2, PAL could not add new airplanes because that was a penalty for being under Category 2.

It is the airlines that were being penalized, but because Mr. Lucio Tan wanted to have presence in the United States, and especially here in New York, we entered into a wet lease agreement with an American carrier but that wet lease agreement did not become successful, because it was a little bit costly,” says Bautista. (The real reason for stopping New York and other EU destinations was the Asian Financial Crisis that hit in 1997 which plagued home currency making flight operations very expensive. It was not the category 2 rating. The airline declared bankruptcy a year later in 1998. ed)

“So we stopped our operations to New York, to Newark Liberty Airport after one year, but we continued our operations to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Honolulu and Guam. Since then, we have increased our presence to the west coast of the United States from four flights a week in Los Angeles, four flights a week in San Francisco. Now, we have 11 flights a week in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Recently, we have increased our presence in Honolulu, from three flights a week to five flights a week. We have also increased our presence in Guam from four flights a week to daily during the Christmas season. These are the routes that we operate here in the United States,” he says.

US destinations

The New York service brought to five its total US destinations, following Los Angeles, San Francisco, Honolulu and Guam.

Bautista says PAL’s on-time performance has been improving, except for issues surrounding airport congestion. “Right now, we are reporting an on-time performance of around 80 percent, which is a little bit below industry standard, but this is because of a lot what you call external factors in the Philippines,” he says.

“If we will not consider the external factors, which include airport congestion, because effectively we have only one and a half runways in Manila and with so many flights, there are admittedly delays because of these external factors. But if we do not consider these external factors, the average on-time performance of PAL’s flights reported on a regular basis is over 95 percent and this is because we have implemented a lot of reforms in terms of operating our airplanes. We take advantage of new technologies. Our airplanes are equipped with state-of-the-art equipment,” says Bautista.

Bautista says PAL aims to further increase its number of flights to Canada and the United States. “We are operating four flights a week to New York. Under our existing agreement with Canadian and US authorities, we can operate a maximum of only five flights a week. For us to be able to increase the frequency to New York via Vancouver, we need to work with the Canadian government,” he says.

Daily flights

“Our people really wanted a daily flight because a daily flight is a better product than four times a week, but since we are still in the development stage, we started with four and then maybe we can increase it to five using all the entitlements and then work with both the FAA and with the US and Canadian authorities to have more entitlements,” says Bautista.

“We continue to study possibilities of flying to new destinations in the US, because the US is a very big market of PAL, having 3 million Filipinos in the US,” he says.

Bautisa says the Manila-New York service will be beneficial to over half a million Filipinos residing in the US east coast, including 253,000 in the New York-New Jersey metropolitan area, 90,000 in Virginia, 75,000 in Washington D.C. and environs and 31,000 in the Philadelphia metro area.

“We have very good bookings on the flight from Manila to Vancouver to New York,” says Bautista, referring to the inaugural flight. We carried more than 300 passengers from Manila to Vancouver. There were 50 who got down in Vancouver, but there were 40 who joined us in Vancouver to New York. For the return flight from New York to Manila, admittedly, the load factor was not that good. There were a little over 100 passengers, but there were passengers who took the flight from Vancouver to Manila,” he says.

“We are in the early stage of development of the route. We are expecting that this route will become a very busy route, considering that there are like 250,000 Filipinos in New York and New Jersey area. Plus we will be able to carry passengers from other east coast cities like [Miami] Florida. We are also working with some American carriers, as partners. We don’t have code-share agreement, but we have already prorate agreements to allow us to offer attractive fares from Manila to New York to other east coast destinations. We are expecting that the load will improve in three to six months,” says Bautista.

Tourism boost

Tourism officials say the new Manila-Vancouver-New York service will help the Philippines attain its goal of attracting 1 million tourists from the US annually. Michelle Dy, the officer-in-charge of the Tourism Department in New York, says PAL’s flights between Manila and the US east coast will encourage more US tourists as well as Filipino-Americans holding US passports to visit the Philippines. “This is exciting news for east coast travellers who now have access to convenient flight options to Manila,” says Dy.

PAL B777-300ER Lands in New York's JFK Airport

The US emerged as the second largest tourism market of the Philippines in 2014, next to South Korea. International visitor arrivals in the Philippines rose 3.3 percent in 2014 to 4.83 million from 4.67 million in 2013.

South Korea kept its position as the leading source market with 1.175 million visitors, followed by the United States with 722,750 arrivals. The number of visitors from the US grew 7.14 percent last year, data from the Tourism Department show.

Earnings from inbound tourism in 2014 hit $4.84 billion, up by 10 percent from $4.4 billion in 2013. Visitors from Korea had the highest contribution at P61.02 billion, while the United States contributed P41.43 billion and Canada added P8.48 billion.

“We share the excitement and optimism of Philippine Airlines as it returns to the US east coast because this now allows the Department of Tourism to reach out to a very important geographic market—New York, many parts of the US east coast and many parts of Canada. The flight connects not only to Manila, but also many island destinations in the Philippines,” says Bengzon, the Tourism undersecretary.

Visit Philippines

PAL’s flight PR 126 departs Manila every Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday at 11:50 p.m. Arrival in Vancouver is 8:50 p.m. on the same day. After a two-hour transit stop, the service departs for New York at 10:50 p.m., touching down at Terminal 1 of JFK International at 7 a.m. the following day.

The return service, PR 127, departs New York at 11 a.m. every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, arriving in Vancouver at 1:50 p.m. It departs the Canadian city at 3:20 p.m. and lands in Manila at 8:35 p.m. the following day.

PAL offered a round-trip all-in fare of $1,174 or P52,830 for the inaugural Manila-Vancouver-New York service.

All Philippine-based carriers are expected to be removed from the European Union overflight ban by June this year after its Civil Aviation Authority (CAAP) convinced the European Commission (EC) of safety standards compliance under their jurisdiction.

“The EU will assess the safety of flights of all airlines that are still blacklisted when they come to the Philippines from April 14 to 24 for safety audit,” Beda Badiola, Deputy Director of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP), said.

“There were positive results during the meeting of CAAP and EC representatives in Brussels last week.” says Badiola adding that “The safety assessments of Philippine-based airline have reached international standards, to EC’s satisfaction.”

To date, only Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific are cleared to fly European Airspace, having cleared the respective airlines in July 2013 and 2014, respectively.

Full service airline SkyJet (Magnum Air SkyJet, Inc.) is sold to media conglomerate Solar Group after the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) approved the transfer of its ownership to Thunder Air Aviation, Inc., subsidiary of Ronald C. Tieng's Solar empire.

Tieng was elected the airlines Chairman with Dino Carlo Chua as President, Capt. Ted Fojas as Chief operating officer and Atty. Theodore Sarmiento as Corporate Secretary.

Skyjet (M8) flies to Basco, Coron, Busuanga, and Caticlan with a fleet of 1 BAE 146-100 and 1 Dornier 328.

After a nearly 18-year hiatus, Philippine Airlines has restored service between Manila and New York City this time flying four times per week between New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport and Manila instead of flying Newark, with the same stop over in Vancouver each way.

New York services was resumed on March 15, with Boeing 777-300ER (RP-C7772) plane used for inaugural flight instead of the usual Airbus A340-300 considering the number of passengers that booked for the flight which reached more than 300.

Flight services was halted to New York in 1997 at the height of the Asian Financial Crisis. It is Philippine Airlines’ longest route. Anna Aero

Today marks the date Philippine Airlines (PAL) made history as if flew the skies of the Philippines becoming the first country in Asia to embrace civil aviation. It is Asia’s oldest scheduled carrier still in operation. It is also the oldest airline in Asia still operating under its current name.

And while Philippine Airlines fly the modern Airbus jets in the 21st Century, the airline first flew on a single prop plane also called Airbus. The single engine aircraft was built by Bellanca Aircraft Corporation of New Castle, Delaware.

Philippine Airlines predecessor was born on December 3, 1930. The name of the airline was Philippine Aerial Taxi Company (PATCO) established by transportation magnate Emmanuel M. Bachrach of the Bachrach Motor Company and beer magnate Andres Soriano of San Miguel Corporation.

Its first passenger flight was made on March 18, 1931 from Manila to Iloilo. The company grew to operate a pair of Bellanca C-27C Airbus fleet under the supervision of William R. Bradford which crisscrosses the Philippine Islands as it made ports of call to Iloilo, Baguio, Masbate, and Paracale from Manila.

In 1932 it was awarded contract by the Insular government of the United States of America to carry mail between Manila and Baguio, and in November 14, 1935 was granted Legislative Franchise by the Philippine Legislature to operate an airline business after the establishment of the Philippine Commonwealth.

The Russian-born Bachrach who is the first American Jew to permanently settled in the Philippines grew his airline by introducing hydroplanes until he died on September 29, 1937. PATCO stopped operations in 1939 due to financial difficulty brought by stiff competition and better service offered by another airline, Iloilo-Negros Air Express Company (INAEC) of sugar magnate Eugenio Lopez which flew on February 1, 1933 after it was founded in 1932.

As a consequence of its cessation of operations in 1939, Bachrach’s majority share in PATCO was bought by Andres Soriano upon the advice of General Douglas McArthur. Due to the delay in the Settlement of Bachrach's estate which included PATCO, Soriano established another airline upon the advice of his personal pilot, Paul Ivring Gunn, on February 26, 1941.

Upon completion of the 1939 Sale of the majority stocks owned by Bachrach in March 13, 1941, Soriano changed the name of his airline to Philippine Air Lines with PAL as the surviving entity.

PAL restarted service on March 15, 1941 with a single Beech Model 18 NPC-54 aircraft, which started its daily services between Manila (from Nielson Field) and Baguioa co-piloted by Gunn assistant, Emil Sylvan Scott.

Ownership again changed hand in September of that year when majority shares of Philippine Airlines was bought by the Philippine government making it the first government owned airline in Asia.

Half a century later, the airline morphed again into another company on January 1, 1992 reborn to become Philippine Airlines, with majority shares previously owned by the Philippine Government sold to PR Holdings controlled by tobacco magnate Lucio Tan.

Philippine Airlines became the first privately owned airline in Asia in 1992 and the sole private legacy airline in Asia Pacific up to this date.

Oman will be the next battleground in the Middle East for Philippine-based carriers as they wrestle for the next 3 slots for Manila next month.

Both Philippine Airlines (PAL) and Cebu Pacific (CEB) got two entitlements to Muscat while Oman Air (OMA) got four to Manila being the sole flag carrier of the Gulf State.

Oman Air currently flies the route thrice a week and is the lone operator on this sector.

Cebu Pacific has already filed with Philippine regulators application to fly Muscat twice weekly this year after securing licenses to fly Qatar.

The airline is bent on securing the new entitlements that would be made available on April 6 after the Sultanate of Oman and the Philippines discusses amendments to Air Services Agreement it reached in 2013.

Philippine Airlines however intend to block expansion plans saying that the current Manila capacity is enough to service the market.

Cebu Pacific (CEB) has announced that it will fly Doha in Qatar from Manila starting June 4 using high density Airbus A330-300 aircraft.

CEB has battled with Philippine Airlines at the Civil Aeronautics Board to secure the five (5) unused frequencies awarded to PAL but failed to secure the remaining flights.

Doha service departs Manila every Monday and Thursday at six 9:35 p.m. with the airline arriving Doha at 2:45 a.m. the next day. The return flight departs Doha every Tuesday and Friday, at 4:15 a.m., arriving in Manila at 6:35 p.m.

Despite low cost frills, Budget carrier Cebu Pacific failed to fill its seats to Sydney as the airline manages to sell just 50.4 per cent of its offered seats last year, making it the worst performing airline to Australia by load factor.

Total load factor to Manila stands at 74.7 per cent in 2014 according to reports published by Australia's Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (Bitre) under the Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development.

Meanwhile, the more expensive full-service carrier Qantas filled 88.7 per cent of its offered seats to Manila, growing 8 per cent year on year which was also the airline's best performing route by loads.

Philippine Airlines also improved filling its offered seats to 70.4 per cent despite new services offered by Cebu Pacific. The airline also manages to grow Brisbane from 19,528 pax in 2013 to 31,794 in 2014.

PAL operates flights from Manila to Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Darwin, while Cebu Pacific and Qantas operates flights to Sydney.

The Philippines has announced that it will be launching the next generation satellite into orbit next year.Department of Science and Technology (DOST) said the country will also send another micro satellite into orbit in 2017 to be carried into space by Japan Space Exploration Agency. The project has a price tag of 840 million pesos, 500 million pesos of which are funded by Japanese Universities.The first micro satellite after 20 years will be named the Philippine Earth Data Resource and Observation or “PEDRO.” The next micro-satellite to be launch in 2017 will be nicknamed “Diwata.”A data receiving station is slated to be put up in Subic at a former communications facility used by the United States of America.Diwata will be used for disaster-mitigation efforts, agriculture, forest cover monitoring, among other possible applications while the first satellite is intended for security surveillance purposes.Possible satellite applications are being coordinated by the University of the Philippines with technical and research support from the Hokkaido University and Tohoku University of Japan.

Intrepid Aviation has let another Airbus A330-343 (RP-C3346) to Philippine low cost carrier Cebu Pacific bringing the aircraft lessor's exposure with the airline to two. The aircraft is powered by Rolls Royce Trent 772B engines and is subject to long-term operating lease by Cebu Pacific. Meanwhile, the airlines other four A330 aircraft are leased from CIT leasing. The fleet are flying domestic as well as regional destinations in the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Australia. Cebu Pacific is slated to lease two more wide bodies from Intrepid to join the airline fleet.

Philippine Airlines (PAL) has reopened its domestic hub in Cebu for the upcoming summer schedule after more planes are made available to its subsidiary PAL Express which will service the route.PAL Express will fly again beginning March 29 the inter island routes of Tacloban, Bacolod, Iloilo, Davao, Cagayan de Oro and Butuan routes as well as creating new hubs in Iloilo for General Santos route and another for Davao - Zamboanga route. All flight services will be flown by Airbus A320 aircraft. While Tablas will be flown by Q300 from Manila.

The flag carrier is also reopening Port Moresby for a twice a week schedule beginning April 10, and is slated to fly to Jinjiang, China four times a week.

Meanwhile, the airline is rationalizing flight services for its international operations by cutting frequencies to Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Dammam, Riyadh, London, Sydney, Guam, and Honolulu.

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Welcome to our blog. The Philippine aviation scene has plenty of surprises in store. We are trying to chronicle the relevant events from orbital satellites to human powered flights and all in between as we possibly could. We are also trying desperately hard to be accurate and factual as far as possible. Humans as we are we do sometimes err. Our apologies for trying to let you know to the best of our knowledge which sometimes fell short. We however value your time reading it and please do contact us for some corrections. Our heartfelt thanks for dropping by.

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